“I have said all these things to you to keep you from falling away. They will put you out of the synagogues. Indeed, the hour is coming when whoever kills you will think he is offering service to God. And they will do these things because they have not known the Father, nor me. But I have said these things to you, that when their hour comes you may remember that I told them to you. I did not say these things to you from the beginning, because I was with you. But now I am going to him who sent me, and none of you asks me, ‘Where are you going?’ But because I have said these things to you, sorrow has filled your heart. Nevertheless, I tell you the truth: it is to your advantage that I go away, for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you. But if I go, I will send him to you. And when he comes, he will convict the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment: concerning sin, because they do not believe in me; concerning righteousness, because I go to the Father, and you will see me no longer; concerning judgment, because the ruler of this world is judged. I still have many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now. When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth, for he will not speak on his own authority, but whatever he hears he will speak, and he will declare to you the things that are to come. He will glorify me, for he will take what is mine and declare it to you. All that the Father has is mine; therefore I said that he will take what is mine and declare it to you.”

Years ago I found myself roped into a conversation that I sometimes think back on. I was stuck talking to a family friend at some kind of birthday or holiday gathering, and they used the time to tell me all the things I was doing wrong in my life, the potential repercussions of my errors, and the things I needed to do if I wanted to correct my course and be successful. I don’t remember the conversation because it was moving, inspiring, or caused some profound change – I remember it because it increased my certainty in the path I was on. There was nothing about the person who sat there lecturing me that I found desirable, nothing that I felt inclined to imitate, no part of their life that I wanted for myself. Their critiques only encouraged me that I was on the right track, at least in some capacity. In essence, I was doing well enough to be thought poorly of by someone who’s opinion I held in very low regard. This is the nature of the relationship we can see between a Christian, sanctified in Christ, and the world. Through salvation we are changed, born again, made new, and redeemed. By this change, we are no longer in step with the world, but are obedient to the will of God, which is unrecognizable and incomprehensible to the world, as sin cannot understand righteousness, and darkness cannot understand light. Winston Churchill is credited with the quote, “You have enemies? Good. That means you’ve stood up for something, sometime in your life.” While this may paint with too broad a brush (as there are perfectly valid reasons someone might have and deserve opposition), there is certainly a thread of truth to it. Humanity has a very real enemy in the form of Satan – Satan who is the called the god of this world, the spirit at work in the sons of disobedience. I say “humanity” and not just Christians because Satan is most certainly the enemy of all mankind. Just because someone tries to kill you with sweet poison instead of a sword, doesn’t make the threat any less valid. But this opposition, this hatred of God is the ever-moving tide of the world, and it is what stands against us as Christians. It is a fight in which our victory is guaranteed, but one which we must endure through surrender to Christ, carried by strength that is not our own. In the world we will face challenges and difficulties, because we have been raised up, because we have been made new, because in Christ we are worthy of being persecuted.

Good Enough to Hate – Divine Comfort Through Persecution

1. Comfort in the Warning

Just to give a quick recap, the start of John 16 finds us at the very doorstep of the crucifixion. The Passover meal is finished, and Jesus is teaching the eleven remaining disciples. The lessons are not all new, many of the principles carry over from teachings we’ve seen Him relay previously, but there seems to be a finer point on them now. It makes sense that on the cusp of the completion of His work, and before the disciple’s world is turned upside down, Jesus speaks to them pointedly, clarifying and driving home the things that will aid and comfort them in the challenging time to come. He starts this section by telling them plainly,

“I have said all these things to you to keep you from falling away. They will put you out of the synagogues. Indeed, the hour is coming when whoever kills you will think he is offering service to God.”

This goes beyond what the disciples will endure in the coming hours and days, looking into what the ministry of the Christian church will bring upon them. If we look just a little farther ahead, we see Jesus tell them in John 16:32,

“Behold, the hour is coming, indeed it has come, when you will be scattered, each to his own home, and will leave me alone. Yet I am not alone, for the Father is with me.”

This fearful response is one we can sympathize with, but this response of running in the face of persecution and death isn’t one that we see the disciples (the ones who would become the Apostles), maintain. After the Sanhedrin beats them and charges them to stop preaching the message of Christ resurrected, Acts 5:41 says of the Apostles,

“Then they left the presence of the council, rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer dishonor for the name.”

When Stephen became the first martyr of the Christian church and was stoned to death Acts 8:1 says of the aftermath,

“And Saul approved of his execution. And there arose on that day a great persecution against the church in Jerusalem, and they were all scattered throughout the regions of Judea and Samaria, except the apostles.”

Now again, I’m not judging the fact that many of the church fled – I can certainly sympathize with a desire to avoid prison and execution, and what’s more, God used this scattering to further spread the gospel. However it’s worth noting that these same men who followed Jesus, who He fed words to comfort and guide and keep them from falling away – the men who fled in fear and left Him at the hour of His arrest – they now stand in the face of persecution and death, and when everyone else flees, they stay the course. We also see the fulfillment of Jesus’s words that “whoever kills you will think he is offering service to God,” in that Saul, a man raised as a pious Pharisee looked upon the execution and approved. The contrast we can see here in the eleven from before the crucifixion to their Spirit filled work as Apostles in the early church, is a testament to the Word of Jesus working in their lives. Between the cautions toward falling away and severe persecution, it can almost be easy to miss,

“They will put you out of the synagogues.”

but we would be remiss to overlook this, as it has very serious implications as well. We already saw an example of this with the man born blind, who Jesus healed in John 9. Being “put out” wasn’t just some simple matter of being asked to leave, but was essentially a religious and social excommunication from practicing Judaism and interacting with the Jewish culture. Along with physical punishment, this was another form of persecution that would be leveraged against those who followed the Way of Christ. While we saw, “whoever kills you will think he is offering service to God,” lived out in Saul, this excommunication shows us another side to that. It’s also something that was spoken to extensively, giving warning and comfort to those who suffered through the Apostolic era, as well as beyond. Jesus taught during the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew 5:11–12,

“Blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.”

He rebuked the Pharisees for their misguided spirit, one of persecuting the prophets in Matthew 23:29–36,

“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you build the tombs of the prophets and decorate the monuments of the righteous, saying, ‘If we had lived in the days of our fathers, we would not have taken part with them in shedding the blood of the prophets.’ Thus you witness against yourselves that you are sons of those who murdered the prophets. Fill up, then, the measure of your fathers. You serpents, you brood of vipers, how are you to escape being sentenced to hell? Therefore I send you prophets and wise men and scribes, some of whom you will kill and crucify, and some you will flog in your synagogues and persecute from town to town, so that on you may come all the righteous blood shed on earth, from the blood of righteous Abel to the blood of Zechariah the son of Barachiah, whom you murdered between the sanctuary and the altar. Truly, I say to you, all these things will come upon this generation.”

Finally, Peter wrote to this effect, giving us comfort and encouragement through the model of Christ in 1 Peter 2:19–21,

“For this is a gracious thing, when, mindful of God, one endures sorrows while suffering unjustly. For what credit is it if, when you sin and are beaten for it, you endure? But if when you do good and suffer for it you endure, this is a gracious thing in the sight of God. For to this you have been called, because Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example, so that you might follow in his steps.”

“And they will do these things because they have not known the Father, nor me.”

Jesus addressed this in John 8:42, saying,

“If God were your Father, you would love me, for I came from God and I am here. I came not of my own accord, but he sent me.”

The corrupt religious leaders could not understand Him because their pursuit was their own authority and power as opposed to the things of God. This is a prime example of worldliness, and the spirit that cannot comprehend the righteousness of God.

“But I have said these things to you, that when their hour comes you may remember that I told them to you. I did not say these things to you from the beginning, because I was with you.”

It’s worth remembering that God doesn’t owe us anything, and yet He abundantly provides. In God there is hope beyond hope, there is a foundation upon which our faith can stand that is unshakeable. God does not have anything to prove, He is perfect, and righteous, and worthy of all praise, and yet in His love for us, we are given affirmation. Despite the fact that His glory is shining and apparent, our flesh is forgetful, our eye easily distracted, and God, knowing this, shows His compassion and tends to us in our struggles. He doesn’t speak once and then fall silent, though once is still more than we deserve. He gives assurance after assurance, leaving us the self-affirming message of His Truth. God gives us a consistent track record of prophecy – of telling us that something will happen, then executing upon it to His glory. This can be seen with great clarity when we look back to some of His earliest promises. In Genesis 17:4–8 God says,

“Behold, my covenant is with you, and you shall be the father of a multitude of nations. No longer shall your name be called Abram, but your name shall be Abraham, for I have made you the father of a multitude of nations. I will make you exceedingly fruitful, and I will make you into nations, and kings shall come from you. And I will establish my covenant between me and you and your offspring after you throughout their generations for an everlasting covenant, to be God to you and to your offspring after you. And I will give to you and to your offspring after you the land of your sojournings, all the land of Canaan, for an everlasting possession, and I will be their God.”

God promises, then fulfills, again, and again, and again throughout scripture, and we see Jesus do the same. It’s interesting that He acknowledges that there were certain things He didn’t say during His earthly ministry. Jesus is the fulfillment of the Law and the prophets, so it makes sense that while He was here and with His disciples, there were certain assurances they didn’t need verbally, because that assurance was manifested in the person of Christ that was guiding and teaching them. But in the face of His departure, the Son does the same as the Father, leaving prophecy to embolden and encourage those who will stand in His name.

2. Comfort in Conviction

“But now I am going to him who sent me, and none of you asks me, ‘Where are you going?’”

Interestingly enough, Peter actually asked this very thing in John 13:36–38,

“Simon Peter said to him, ‘Lord, where are you going?’ Jesus answered him, ‘Where I am going you cannot follow me now, but you will follow afterward.’ Peter said to him, ‘Lord, why can I not follow you now? I will lay down my life for you.’ Jesus answered, ‘Will you lay down your life for me? Truly, truly, I say to you, the rooster will not crow till you have denied me three times.’”

Peter voiced the question, but we see where his heart and mind were, and the response it earned him. Suffice it to say that as Jesus speaks in John 16, no one is asking this now.

“But because I have said these things to you, sorrow has filled your heart. Nevertheless, I tell you the truth: it is to your advantage that I go away, for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you. But if I go, I will send him to you.”

Something I get fixated on a lot is the resurrection – I admit, as a Christian, this seems a good thing to be fixated on, but it’s something I find very sweet and comforting on a personal level. People say with great regularity that Jesus loved us enough to die for us. This is absolutely true, Jesus faced unimaginable suffering on the cross, and gives us the picture of ultimate love. The reason that the resurrection strikes such a particular chord for me is that in it we realize that Jesus loved us enough to die for us, and enough to come back. He conquered death and the Good Shepherd returned to His flock. We see another picture of this in the sending of the Helper of the Holy Spirit. Jesus leaves, but not to abandon us, not to leave us without, but to return in a more broad, sweeping way. I know John 15:26 says of the Holy Spirit,

“the Spirit of truth, who proceeds from the Father,”

and that this matter of where the Spirit proceeds from is a hotly debated doctrinal point, particularly between the Catholic and Orthodox churches, but here’s the thing – if the Holy Spirit is the Spirit of the Father, and the Father and Son are One, then the Holy Spirit is the Spirit of the Son. Three in One, One in Three. Jesus ascends into heaven, He bodily leaves the world behind, then He returns. The Spirit of Truth, of Light, of victory over the darkness of the fallen world returns, and by this Spirit the Father and Son come to dwell within us as Jesus said in John 14:23,

“Jesus answered him, ‘If anyone loves me, he will keep my word, and my Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him.’”

This promise of the coming Helper is yet another expression of the immensity of God’s love for us, and the provision He has made.

“And when he comes, he will convict the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment:”

The conviction of the coming Spirit highlights the message of Proverbs 1:29–33,

“Because they hated knowledge and did not choose the fear of the LORD, would have none of my counsel and despised all my reproof, therefore they shall eat the fruit of their way, and have their fill of their own devices. For the simple are killed by their turning away, and the complacency of fools destroys them; but whoever listens to me will dwell secure and will be at ease, without dread of disaster.”

“concerning sin, because they do not believe in me;”

This is a conviction that Jesus spoke of early in John’s gospel, in John 3:18,

“Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God.”

“concerning righteousness, because I go to the Father, and you will see me no longer;

Jesus is bodily leaving the world, and for those who only perceive and understand Him in the flesh as a man, He is simply gone. While there is sight and discernment given by the Spirit, this contrast brings conviction.

John 7:32–36,

“The Pharisees heard the crowd muttering these things about him, and the chief priests and Pharisees sent officers to arrest him. Jesus then said, ‘I will be with you a little longer, and then I am going to him who sent me. You will seek me and you will not find me. Where I am you cannot come.’ The Jews said to one another, ‘Where does this man intend to go that we will not find him? Does he intend to go to the Dispersion among the Greeks and teach the Greeks? What does he mean by saying, “You will seek me and you will not find me,” and, “Where I am you cannot come”?’”

Jesus warned the ruling Jews of this some time ago, but the message didn’t land, their ears were deaf to His caution.

“concerning judgment, because the ruler of this world is judged.”

What we see in the arrival of the Holy Spirit is the assurance of a mass spiritual victory. We are told how the war against darkness, which was decided from the beginning will end – Satan will be judged. From what I’ve read, this could translate as “has been judged and continues to be judged,” which carries scriptural support, as we know that Satan and his angels were judged before their final defeat.

Jude 6,

“And the angels who did not stay within their own position of authority, but left their proper dwelling, he has kept in eternal chains under gloomy darkness until the judgment of the great day.”

Revelation 12:9,

“And the great dragon was thrown down, that ancient serpent, who is called the devil and Satan, the deceiver of the whole world—he was thrown down to the earth, and his angels were thrown down with him.”

Revelation 20:7–10,

“And when the thousand years are ended, Satan will be released from his prison and will come out to deceive the nations that are at the four corners of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them for battle; their number is like the sand of the sea. And they marched up over the broad plain of the earth and surrounded the camp of the saints and the beloved city, but fire came down from heaven and consumed them, and the devil who had deceived them was thrown into the lake of fire and sulfur where the beast and the false prophet were, and they will be tormented day and night forever and ever.”

Again, this is a war that was already won, but the arrival of the Holy Spirit shows us that assured victory.

“I still have many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now.”

This is an unexpected, and probably often overlooked ray of hope. Jesus is about to die on the cross, time is growing short, but this comment draws attention to His future teachings – one’s He gives after His ressurection.

Acts 1:3,

“He presented himself alive to them after his suffering by many proofs, appearing to them during forty days and speaking about the kingdom of God.”

Luke 24:44–49,

“… ‘These are my words that I spoke to you while I was still with you, that everything written about me in the Law of Moses and the Prophets and the Psalms must be fulfilled.’ Then he opened their minds to understand the Scriptures, and said to them, ‘Thus it is written, that the Christ should suffer and on the third day rise from the dead, and that repentance for the forgiveness of sins should be proclaimed in his name to all nations, beginning from Jerusalem. You are witnesses of these things. And behold, I am sending the promise of my Father upon you. But stay in the city until you are clothed with power from on high.’”

3. Comfort in the Glory of God

“When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth, for he will not speak on his own authority, but whatever he hears he will speak, and he will declare to you the things that are to come. He will glorify me, for he will take what is mine and declare it to you. All that the Father has is mine; therefore I said that he will take what is mine and declare it to you.”

If our assurance lies in ourselves, we are doomed. Our assurance, our righteousness is not our own, but is what God has wrought in us by His Spirit. God’s righteousness is complete, perfect, eternal. If our assurance lies is God, we are saved – completely and totally freed and redeemed. We can take heart in the sending of the Spirit, in the wisdom that the Spirit brings, and above all, in the glory of the Living God. God speaks to this, the promise of His righteousness in Ezekiel 36:24–32,

“I will take you from the nations and gather you from all the countries and bring you into your own land. I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you shall be clean from all your uncleannesses, and from all your idols I will cleanse you. And I will give you a new heart, and a new spirit I will put within you. And I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put my Spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes and be careful to obey my rules. You shall dwell in the land that I gave to your fathers, and you shall be my people, and I will be your God. And I will deliver you from all your uncleannesses. And I will summon the grain and make it abundant and lay no famine upon you. I will make the fruit of the tree and the increase of the field abundant, that you may never again suffer the disgrace of famine among the nations. Then you will remember your evil ways, and your deeds that were not good, and you will loathe yourselves for your iniquities and your abominations. It is not for your sake that I will act, declares the Lord GOD; let that be known to you. Be ashamed and confounded for your ways, O house of Israel.”

We are hated by the world because Christ is hated by the world, and yet we have ultimate comfort in knowing that we are cared for, sustained, and delivered by our Father in heaven. We do not fight alone, but go forth armored in His righteousness, given discernment by His Spirit, and made clean for the sake of His eternal glory. Life is hard, the world is cruel, but are offered comfort in abundance. As Paul wrote in Romans 8:31–34,

“What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things? Who shall bring any charge against God’s elect? It is God who justifies. Who is to condemn? Christ Jesus is the one who died—more than that, who was raised—who is at the right hand of God, who indeed is interceding for us.”

Pastor Chris’s sermon: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hc1MH2NXpyk